What a strange day yesterday

It feels like two separate days because it was so long and I was so tired.

As you all know from my flurry of pictures on Facebook my floor were basically finished at the new home. I swept all of the first floor and then steam mopped the entire thing. It took a long time! My little o’cedar static cloth fake roomba is going to be running an awful lot. I really hope the cat gets over his fear of it.
Then my sister and I had plans to go to Spoken Word Toledo at 7:30. It’s a storyteller event. There is a theme, last night’s was embarrassment, and there are guest speakers who stand up and tell a story. Audience members are also encouraged to put their names in a basket and are randomly pulled to stand up and tell their stories as well.
So my sister came to my house first and gave me lovely birthday gifts, a beautiful bird bath for my new place as well as a lovely scarf and earrings.

When we got there I got a glass of wine because I needed to take a pill for my neuropathy. Honestly we mostly spent the first half catching up because we haven’t talked much lately. During intermission we were discussing the fact that neither one of us had been able to remember an embarrassing story and suddenly my sister remembered one of hers and told me it, then she told me another one which made me remember one. On a whim I ran out and put my name in the basket. I was laughing because the guy who emcees, Ryan Bunch, was coming back in and I caught him in the hallway and he helped me but I told him, don’t pick me!

Insert beautiful picture here in your mind since WP won’t let me upload pictures today.
So after about five picks and funny stories he comes to Erin to pick the next random name out of the basket, and I knew it was going to happen and yup, she picked my name.
Did I ever tell you about my terrible stage fright? It’s real. When I am in front of people or on camera my brain just goes blank.
So after some swearing (by me) I got up on the stage, up to the Mic and told my story. I really don’t remember what I said, it was a blur and felt like it took 30 seconds. I only remember looking up at the audience and thinking it looked like a scene from a movie. All I could see was white light with some blurry faces behind it, just like a movie that shows someone on stage being terrified and seeing the audience. ~before you ask, I cannot tell you the story because it involves more than me. I could tell it there because no one knew me or the people I was talking about. But then. OMG guys, I won! We didn’t know there were prizes, and had forgotten there were even rewards! It was crazy. My first place gift bag had a couple of great gift certificates, including to my favorite coffee shop to walk to with katy my lovely daughter, and a nice spa! Also some fun Toledo stuff and hair products of all things.

So today I am still basking in the glow of working through a fear and then being rewarded for it, and the added bonus of making so many people laugh!